


Bag and Tag

by HellsPurestDevil



Series: Fallout Vindictus [7]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 4
Genre: Ambushes and Sneak Attacks, Blood, Blood and Gore, Blood and Injury, Minor Character Death, Monsters, Mutants, Other, RV, Rain, scientists - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2020-07-14
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:55:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25256527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HellsPurestDevil/pseuds/HellsPurestDevil
Summary: A grab and go mission goes horribly wrong for some scientists when something goes bump in the night during their stay in rainy woods
Series: Fallout Vindictus [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1783843
Kudos: 1





	Bag and Tag

A clap of thunder sent a shock wave through the Forest, solemnly rocking a muddy RV trailer that had been hurriedly parked between two large boulders. Although it was backed up against a cliff, the vehicle was hardly sheltered from the rain, which poured down like a cascade of high-velocity pebbles. Given the frantic nature of the scene, the raindrops were not unlike anxious fingers, tapping the glossy roof with a sense of desperate urgency. The rhythm was, in essence, a natural metronome for the vehicle's occupants, though the tempo was far too sporadic and frenzied for their liking.

Every so often, a swaying tree would be caught in an unexpected blast of wind, creating an unearthly wail as the leaves and branches rattled in defiance, snapping at the storm like a pack of ferocious predators. The surrounding vegetation would occasionally be thrust against the trailer with a metallic thud, startling those inside. The impact was fierce enough to buckle the roof . . . or so it seemed.

The noise, however, failed to overpower the shrieks and gurgles that came from behind the reinforced windows.

A group of scientists and maintenance workers were frantically searching for a means to silence a almost two meter-long creature, whom they had, by gods luck some would say, recently captured. The head scientist and his female assistant were struggling to hold it still, clamping its mouth shut whenever possible risking severe injury, for it had chewed through its muzzle. The device was still fastened around its skull, though the front segment dangled from the creatures mouth like a gob of saliva. It arms had been pinned behind it's back, and the chain used to hold them together was the only thing withstanding the struggle.

The same could not be said for its captors. Although the Creature proved to be a rebellious hostage, it was not as lethal as its other counterparts, but troublesome nonetheless. As it thrashed about, its captors compensated for each movement tenaciously, just barely managing to constrain its body, which was still slick with rainwater. Whenever it made a lunge for their faces, they squeezed it reprimandingly.

Not like it worked.

The lesser scientists often found themselves flinching at these potentially hostile movements, latently preparing themselves for an unprecedented escape. They remained tense long after these brief intervals, watching the creature out of the corners of their eyes. Their anxiety did not remain unnoticed by their supervisor, however, who used their fear as a sordid motivator.

"Don't let the little bugger distract you, folks; it only gives its pack more time to plan an ambush. Let's shut him up so we can put some distance between us, eh?" a brawny man prompted. He was dressed in a sort of armored suit, and no one knew his name, though everyone knew him as the _engineer_. A few scientists cringed at the man's comment regardless. There was no way they could delay the trailer's discovery; it was far too late for a silent escape, and the creature's vocalizations had nothing to do with it.

He wasn't the largest thing they had wrangled- not even close- but the creatures deadliness was not dependent on brute force alone, and they all shivered at the prospect of the rest of its group catching wind of their misdeeds, in this impromptu bag-and-run.

Because they had not prepared themselves for anything more than a grab-and-go mission, the researchers were the quarry of a relentless foe, and everyone knew it. No one was safe as long as they remained stationary beside the crossroad, and the pretense of subtlety was nothing more than a dubious façade to the panicked scientists.

The maintenance workers, on the other hand, seemed to believe the engineer's claims, though they lacked the competence needed to contribute to the endeavor.

It was clear that someone would have to decide upon a course of action.

Nobody volunteered.

Whether or not they could access their destination by speeding across the most direct path was becoming irrelevant as their assailants drew near. The longer road, though more concealed, was hazardous in rainy conditions, but they were somewhat equipped for this type of vehicular travel. Neither option was completely viable, given the cunning of their adversaries and the unpredictable weather. Whatever the case, they would have to motor it if a consensus couldn't be reached.

Without warning, their situation had become much, much worse. The back half of the trailer, who's tire-footing had been washed away by the impending rains, suddenly lurched into a squelchy dike, splashing the bumper with putrid water. Those who were close to the walls grabbed counters and ledges for support as the RV tittered and tottered, trying to regain ground. A toolbox smashed open with a frightening bang. The scalpels inside slid across the floor one by one, clattering against the back wall noisily, creating a cacophony of percussive rattling.

After a couple of half-hearted wobbles, the RV finally settled itself in a precarious, slanted state. A temporary river had formed at the base of the cliff behind the trailer, and the earth beneath the back wheels was still slowly washing away.

"Someone, get tow rope!"

The scientists froze. Some shuffled backwards sheepishly, others stared at the man with utter disbelief. Surely, he didn't expect . . .

"You, Joe! On your feet!"

The conscripted mechanic shook his head fiercely, but his reluctance was soon dismissed. Before he could protest any further, he was shoved out the door, still whimpering, into the rainy darkness.

With Joe gone, a sudden hush swept over the scientists. The creature was no longer screaming. It now lay quietly on its side, arms still tied behind its back, chirruping almost pleasantly. Somehow, this sudden calmness of the creature was less reassuring than it's screeching mere moments before. Especially with how it's large eyes and head flickered back and forth like a cat who heard what it's owner could not, sharp teeth clicking in its mouth.

"Alright, the rest of you, Keep it moving! We don't want to be Behind schedule!"

It was much to late for that. Had the man shouting orders even glanced at the clock, who kept ticking away on the wall like nothing was happening, he would have realized that they were already almost a hour behind schedule. And although most personnel did obey his commands, some just stared ominously out the front window, waiting for the inevitable tragedy to occur.

They had seen death before, it wasn't entirely new in their line of work, but they were never quite ready for it, nor had they been completely desensitized to gore and violence. One spectator even turned to his friend and began to place bets on how long Joe would survive. He was joking, of course, but they still agreed on "less than five minutes". Morbid humor was hardly a rarity in such tense environments, but there was a hint of seriousness to this particular gag. Rather than dwell on it, the scientists focused their attention on the engineer, who was presently yelling at them to get their lazy rears in gear and to hurry with their work. Through the front window, those not moving tried to get a good view of the abandoned building where they had somehow manage to capture their quarry without alerting the rest of its group from between the trees, but the rain was thick, and it was nearly impossible to see through the dense, silver curtain of vapor.

Then the trailer rocked harshly to the right.

The trailer rocked and reeled and suddenly, the researchers were paralyzed with fear. Even the engineer seemed petrified. After a moment of silence, he attempted to resume his authoritative instructions. Those few still staring out the window, found their view of the building now blocked by trees. Whatever had rocked the RV had completely thrown it off its original path, and had moved it a few feet the opposite direction.

All they saw now, was the darkness of forest.

The engineer preceded to bark more orders, but it was obvious he was starting to loose his nerves as well. His eyes kept flicking over to the windows. But even still he kept up the leader act.

"Well, I'll be damned! Johnson found a rope! Tie the little sucker up, boys, and for the love of god, someone tell Joe to hurry u-"

The man, who had been identified as Johnson, had suddenly dropped the rope his was holding, his face white and pale, sweat beading down his face in rivulets as he stared passed the engineer. When the engineer told him to hurry his ass up, Johnson turned him around with his free hand.

There, sliding down the front windshield, dripping a river of red down the glass, was a bloody stub of an arm.

"My god . . ."

"Is that? . . ."

The engineer turned sharply.

"Move! Move! Move!" he bellowed.

The man in the driver's seat slammed his foot on the gas pedal. The wheels spun uselessly in the mud. the vehicle was meant to be all terrain, but it was almost as if even the RV was too scared to move. The engineer knew that they would need to conserve their fuel, seeing as they had no idea how long it would have to last, but if one of those creatures breached the fragile windows, they wouldn't live long enough to burn their supply.

"Hey, Simon! Any chance you could get us moving?" the engineer shouted.

"You want to get out and push?!?!" Simon snapped.

The engine's roar, combined with human shouts and high shrilly cries, was loud enough to force any coherent thoughts to dissipate upon arrival. The personnel, who had once graduate top of the class, were now as competent as lobotomized pigeons.

Then, for a brief moment, everything went silent, except for the creature in the back area of the RV, who had resumed its wailing. A single cry emerged from outside the vehicle, followed by silence, save for the constant revving of the engine and the shrieking. The head scientist scanned the room with a scowl, holding his index finger over his lips. His assistant was shaking fiercely, but she managed to catch Simon's eye. He stopped revving the engine as everyone listened intently.

The Creature in the RV emitted a short, shrill call. From outside, a similar response, then silence.

Then, they watched with horrid fascination, as single, pale, four legged body stepped into the light of the back window. It moved forward with a calculated prowl, prodding the trailer with its face to find a weak spot. It raised its head when it reached the window, its breath fogging the glass with each puff.

Suddenly, it backed away from the light and the scientists, who had been frozen with terror, began to let their guard down.

Then chaos ensued.

The first impact of four of the things outside simultaneously ramming the back wall rocked the RV, knocking anything loose across the floor. Everyone scrambled to their feet, bracing themselves. The second impact came, and with it, a large crack in the back window.

And as Simon gunned the accelerator, then came the third, hardest, most brutal impact. It hit the back of the RV with such a bang that was not so unlike the thunder outside. The force, coupled with the aggressive revving of the engine, dislodged the RV from the dike in which it was stuck in, and sent everyone to the floor again. They had been bracing for a short thrust, and were therefore caught off guard by the sudden movement of the vehicle.

As much as they wanted to get away from the creatures who now attempted to break the glass by ramming themselves head first into it, their chauffeur could only drive around 45 km/hour safely. Driving at night in a forest with torrential rains and uneven road, meant that any slight mistake on his part would send the RV straight into a tree, or front first into whatever boulder decided to show itself at the last moment, and that would certainly mean being overrun. . . or instant death, if they were lucky.

The engineer was once again on the verge of an outburst, but Simon didn't need reminding. He set the RV in motion, conscious of his speed, but more aware of the teeth and claws behind him. The RV barreled down the long route, bobbing up and down the uneven road like a hula dancer.

Somehow, Johnson had managed to tie the Creature in the trailer down and fully muzzled it, meaning the head scientist and his companion were free to move around without the worry of being hit by a thrashing body.

They could see the white bodies of the creatures glistening with rain in the tail lights of the RV, running a car's length behind them. Unfortunately for the scientists, they were having no trouble closing the gap. The chieftain of the creatures got so close as to even make a lunge for the vehicle, but it missed only by mere inches, lost its footing, and toppled over, slipping in the mud, before righting itself up again mid-roll just as the rest of its pack barreled past it.

"How fast do you think those things are going?" the assistant ventured.

"Are you fucking serious?" the head scientist spat, "This isn't exactly an ideal time to clock their speed!"

"That's not what I meant," she snapped as she stumbled through the crowd. She pushed her way past the frazzled scientists, making her way towards Simon, who was still driving like a madman.

"I have a plan. Boost us up to sixty," she commanded.

"But I-"

"This part of the road runs straight for quite a while . . . Just do it!"

He shifted most of his weight to his right foot, accelerating them brutally.

"I sure hope you know what you're doing . . ."

She did.

Within a short amount of time, they began to match the creatures current speed.

"Are you crazy?" the head scientist shouted, having just noticed the absence of his partner, "We can't outrun them!"

"We don't have to," she replied smugly.

Suddenly, sirens began to blare over pole-mounted loudspeakers on the top of the Vehicles Roof.

"Ha-ha! We triggered the speed-radar!" she whooped.

Ah The speed-radar. What a fancy bit of equipment that turned out to be. Created by the same company members who had sent and therefore gotten these poor people stuck in the situation they were in, it was designed to admit a distinct siren blare should the vehicle go above a certain speed limit. It's intended use was meant to be an SOS call, or LDAS (long-distance-alerting-system) being it's technical term. A warning to other members of different teams, signaling of impending danger, such as being pursued by something that would have to make the Vehicle move at such high speeds.

For smaller things however....

The assistant turned her head to the back window. Sure enough, the plan worked. The creatures were backing off. They seemed to think that the humans had called for backup, or were at least alerted to their presence. They had broken formation, unfocused and confused, snapping at each other, some scratching at what would have been ears with their long clawed fingers, the high shrill mechanical call obviously bothering them.

But the relief of escape was short lived.

The assistant had barely enough time to tell the driver to slow, when Simon slammed his foot on the brake pedal. They had mistakenly approached a hidden intersection, the road littered with ATV's and Jeeps. And as Simon swerved to avoid them, The trailer pitched, rolled onto its side, then went spiraling in the mud like a spinning bottle. It stopped when it came into contact with a decaying log, which penetrated the front windshield, nearly impaling the scientists like skewered meat.

Most personnel managed to avoid the tree. Simon, however, was not so lucky. Still buckled in, A small branch pinned his shoulder to the drivers seat, like an entomologist's prized specimen, nearly cracking under his weight. He had begun to bleed profusely. The other scientists, who were not severely injured, crawled through the shattered windshield to escape.

The head scientist and his assistant were hobbling away from the scene together, both limping badly. They turned toward the wreckage with morbid awe.

"Wait what about Simon?!"

But by the time they realized, it had been to late. They had both turned just in time, to see four, pale, sickly looking bodies begin to advance towards the trailer. They could hear Simon screaming, the tree limb breaking. He gurgled for a long while, and then all was silent, save for the ghastly sound of things tearing flesh from bone, of snarling and growling and hissing.

As many scientists closed their eyes or bowed their heads to mourn their fallen comrade, the head scientist and his assistant still looked on, waiting.

And sure enough, their quarry, who they had lost two men in trying to capture, slinked its way out the back of the trailer while its companions feasted savagely on what was left of poor Simon. The chains holding its arms behind its back had broken and now hung from its wrists like great silver bracelets. The rope used to hold its mouth closed and bind it was long gone as was the muzzle...or what was left of it, that hung from its jaws.

With heavy hearts, the team watched as the Creature turned. Its yellowing teeth bared, shining in the glistening moonlight. As it's companions feasted, the creature watched its captors, seeming to squint at them.

Then it threw its head back, and laughed, howling like a phantom into the misty cold air, chilling their spines, before growling and bolting off into the night followed by the others, each with a prize between its teeth.

As they watched each Creature disappear, one thing became abundantly clear: it was going to be a long night and the company was defiantly not going to like this.


End file.
